In scanning laser devices, laser light is reflected off one or more scanning mirrors. Scanning laser projectors and laser depth scanners are two examples of scanning laser devices. In scanning laser projectors, images are projected by scanning laser light into a pattern with a scanning mirror, with individual pixels generated by modulating the laser light. Similarly, laser depth scanners generate depth maps by scanning laser light into a pattern with a scanning mirror and measuring depth based on the reflections of the laser light.
One benefit of scanning laser devices is their compact size in both scanning laser projectors and laser depth scanners. One limiting factor in the size of current laser scanning devices is the size of the scanning mirror assemblies that hold and power the scanning mirror. In many cases the size of the scanning mirror assemblies is relatively large compared to the scanning mirror itself. This can be especially problematic for applications that require a relatively large scanning mirror and small overall device size.
Thus, there is a need for scanning mirror assemblies with reduced overall size relative to the size of the scanning mirror itself. Stated another way, there is a need for scanning mirror assemblies that can use a relatively large scanning mirror while being implemented in a relatively small device.